J. Transcriptus mated pair!?

[rebelyeller89]

So I've been waiting for months and I think I have a mated pair. I'm working a new job and this is the first time I've really watched them in about a week. There is a larger and smaller keeping pretty close together. The smaller, which I thought I had read is the male, is throwing mouthfuls if sand out of a cave. Does this mean they will be laying eggs, or is this just regular behavior for a newly formed pair?

 

[toddnbecka]

If they're hanging around the cave together they're most likely paired up and preparing to spawn. Incidentally, are they the "Gombe" transcriptus or one of the more peaceful ones?

 

[rebelyeller89]

I'm not really sure. This is what they look like. They're in a species only tank right now ( save for Goliath my Pleco) and they don't seem too horrible.

 

[toddnbecka]

Those are the smaller, relatively peaceful transcriptus. I got 2 groups of 6 of the Gombe's (at different times, months apart) and ended up with a single fish from each group after they were finished killing each other. Ironically, one was a male and the other a female, and they eventually paired up and spawned after I put the female into a 55 with the male.